DAR ES SALAAM, Oct 25 (Reuters) – Tanzania has held talks with France’s Total and Britain’s BP over oil and gas exploration, its energy ministry said on Saturday, aiming to add to major companies active in its thriving energy sector.

Companies already present in the east African state include Norway’s Statoil, Brazil’s Petrobras, Royal Dutch Shell , BG Group and Exxon Mobil..

Total executives were in Tanzania’s commercial capital Dar es Salaam this week with Energy and Minerals Minister Sospeter Muhongo, the ministry said.

“Total has expressed interest to explore for gas and oil in the Lake Eyasi (open acreage area),” Muhongo said in a statement.

“We welcome competition and we would like many companies to participate in this sector,” he added.

Muhongo has also held separate talks with BP officials, though he did not give details about when those talks were held.

In May, China’s state-run offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC Ltd and Russian gas producer Gazprom also submitted bids for four of the eight oil and gas blocks Tanzania offered in its fourth offshore licensing round.

East Africa is a new hot spot for energy companies after substantial deposits of crude oil were found in Uganda and major natural gas reserves were discovered off the coasts of Tanzania and Mozambique.

Do ensure that you have the chronology of your career from leaving High School to your current role. If you have gaps in your career then state the dates and the situation. We understand that things happen in people’s lives over which they have no control (and if you chose to have a three year sabbatical in a tropical paradise then we are, frankly, quite envious)

Do have a brief CV with everything laid out clearly and concisely over three to four pages and then have a second document where you flesh it out with more detail, particularly in your more recent roles

In the fuller document do demonstrate the breadth of your experience but be concise, the longer CV should ideally not be more than six pages long

Do think about the achievements you have had during your career and provide a concise and meaningful list of bulleted points

Do provide an idea of the scale of your staff and financial responsibility in each role

Do use Microsoft Word as the document format (if we have to grapple for fifteen minutes with a document that defiantly refuses to open without the intervention of the IT department, it does not make for a good start to our relationship with you)

Do leave off a front page with your name on it. We know that everyone does it and yes, it does look nice, but it is unnecessary. If just a few trees are saved every year by us not having to print that one unnecessary page, it will have been worth making you crossly switch to your document (which is in Word isn’t it?) and delete the front page

Do use a confidential e-mail address to communicate with us

The Don’t’s

Don’t have graphics or special effects on your CV. We once received a migraine-inducing CV from an outstanding individual. It had a colourful border which moved and flashed like a takeaway restaurant sign. A good CV could be passed over because of such clutter

Don’t leave off the early part of your career, so you moved 10 times between the age of 24 and 30, you are not alone. If information appears to be missing, we get paranoid

Don’t use obscure or ancient computer formats. The recipient of your CV is under pressure. When the message ‘unknown format’ comes up, it is severely frowned upon. Microsoft Word is the way to go.

Don’t password protect your document and expect us to phone you for the password. Use a confidential e-mail address which you can get on the internet

Once you are on our confidential database we will be able to match you up with potential opportunities as they arise.

Don’t be offended if you are not invited for a face-to-face meeting with us. Keep in mind that as an Executive Search Firm we are client driven. Our ability to assist you is based on the positions that we are appointed to work on. We will not take up your time (and, admittedly, ours) and meet with you unless we have a definite role that we would like to discuss with you. We will make contact with you directly when a position arises that we feel will be suitable and of interest to you and take things from there.

STAR methodology: Situation, Task, Action, Result. Questions which are best answered using this methodology will certainly appear to test your actions in certain situations. Come up with good examples from prior experiences.

Ask questions: make sure you have prepared a list of questions you would like to have answered.

Show respect: listen to your recruiter, be friendly, positive and show interest.

Tip: send a thank-you email after the interview. You can confirm your interest for the vacancy and say your enthusiasm for the position has increased. This will definitely distinguish you from other candidates.

Common Job Interview Questions Regardless of Industry

How would you describe yourself?

Describe yourself in one word.

Name 3 of your strengths and weaknesses.

What type of books, magazines and newspapers do you read? Which were the latest ones you read?

Why did you choose your specific university?

How was your transition from high school to university?

Tell me more about your academic performances.

How will your university education benefit your future career?

Do you have any plans to continue studying, for an advanced degree for example?

If given the chance, would you have done anything differently in your university career?

What would you have done anything differently in your life until now?

Where do you see yourself 5 years from now?

What makes you angry?

Describe your ideal job following graduation.

What career goals have you set yourself?

What influenced you to choose this career path?

What traits and qualifications do you have which will make you successful in this career path?

Why do you want to work at our company?

What do you know about our company?

Why should I hire you?

I can also hire someone internally in the firm. Why should I hire an external person such as you?

What changes would you make in our company if I hired you?

You`re standing in an elevator with your potential future boss – how would you sell yourself in 10 seconds?

You are allowed to ask someone in history a single question. Who would you choose and what is your question?

You are allowed to ask someone in history a single question. Who would you choose and what is your question?

How many airplanes are there in the world?

How would you gain the confidence of a client who has over 30 years experience?

Do you prefer working alone or in a team?

What is the role you adopt whilst working in a team?

Tell me about a problem you faced whilst working in a team. How did you resolve the problem?

How good are you at solving conflicts?

What would you do if a colleague is underperforming, which is hurting you and your division as well?

Are you good at dealing with stress? Give me several examples which demonstrate this.

Are you willing to travel for the job?

Are you willing to relocate for the job?

What was the biggest challenge you ever faced?

Describe a situation where you successfully convinced others of your ideas.

Describe a situation where you arrived at a compromise with a colleague.

Please give me some examples which show that you can adapt to a variety of people, cultures, and environments.

Which areas of the world would you like to explore and why?

Are you good at handling several tasks and responsibilities simultaneously?

When you receive a call from a recruiter to discuss your interest in a new career opportunity, be aware that the reason for the call is also to assess your suitability for it.
While the discussion that you have with the Consultant on the telephone is extremely important, your CV will be asked for. This document is your calling card, it defines who you are to an Executive Search Consultant. Set it out clearly and coherently.
Points for well thought CV then read on.

Generally, a professional CV has the following structure:

Personal Particulars (Name, Address, Email, Tel.): For some countries the photograph is also included in the top section. In addition the marital status and date of birth is often mentioned in Europe and Asia.

Professional Experience: Usually the company name, dates, job title and short summary of the position and especially achievements is given.

Educational Background: This includes tertiary education details and certificates/further professional qualifications

Further Skills: This can include language and IT skills

Interests: Short paragraph on your activities outside of work (e.g. hobbies, volunteering)

References: Usually 2-3 references are mentioned (contact persons) of recent jobs or the educational field. They are mentioned together with either phone number or email address. It has to be made sure that the relevant person actually consents to act as a reference for your application.